Megan
I regained consciousness before I opened my eyes, the familiar sounds of the hospital all around me. My lips pursed.
Why am I in the hospital?
I tried to sit up and open my eyes, but a lightning pain zipped through my head. “Ow!”
“Hey, take it easy. You’re in the hospital, Megs.” A pair of strong hands gripped my shoulders and I jumped, even though the deep voice soothed my anxiety.
I held up my hands for the kind voice to give me some space, and I worked to slowly open my eyes. The overhead lights were too bright and every time I opened an eye, it stung like hell.
A click sounded and the voice spoke again. “The lights are off. Try opening them again.”
I did as instructed and released a sigh. “Thanks.”
I let my gaze take in the man before me. He was good looking. No, he was more than good looking. He was gorgeous as hell, with thick brown hair and clear cobalt blue eyes. The white jacket draped across wide shoulders pegged him as a doctor, and the tie said he wasn’t a regular doctor.
The emotion, the anguish in his eyes said something else.
I smiled, or I tried for one. “Hi.”
“Hey, Megs.” He sat on the bed and wrapped his arms around me, squeezing me in a tight hug. “It’s so good to see those gorgeous green eyes. I was starting to worry you might not wake up.”
Might not wake up? I pulled out of his embrace and frowned. “What do you mean? Who is Megs, and why wouldn’t I wake up? What happened to me, Doctor?”
The man with the beautiful blue eyes pulled back and slowly stood up, a devastated expression on his face. “You’re Megs. Megan Jackson, and I’m Casey Jackson. You’re my wife.”
“Wife?”
He nodded. “What do you remember?”
I closed my eyes and searched my mind for something familiar. Anything. “Nothing.”
“Nothing at all?”
I shook my head.
“Do you know where you are right now?” His expression was serious, and seriously worried.
I looked around the hospital room for any sign that might trigger something. “No,” I told him, my shoulders sagging in disappointment.
Casey nodded, but the tension was all contained in his jaw. “All right. It’s common to have some memories issues after a head injury.”
“Head injury?” My hand flew to my head and I gently patted around in search of something, but I didn’t really know what.
“You might not want to do that. You took a lug wrench to the head. It’s bandaged right now, but trust me when I tell you it’ll hurt like hell if you touch it that hard.” His lips pulled into a grin.
“What?”
Casey blinked and shook his head. “Nothing. I was expecting you to touch it anyway, just to be sure.”
“Is that something I would do?”
“Yeah,” he answered on a laugh, “it is.”
My shoulders sagged in relief and a small smile curved my lips as I let my hand glide up to the injury. “Ow. Damn, now I don’t feel so bad about doing that.” It hurt like a son of a bitch, though.
The sound of Casey’s deep chuckle brought a smile to my face. “Megs, I’m so happy you’re all right.”
My smile faded at his words, so full of emotion. So earnest. “Casey, I don’t remember you.”
“I know,” he sighed. “We’ll work on that. Cal, Dr. Rutledge, is coming up with a short-term plan, but we’ll have to find another neurologist for long-term treatment if that becomes necessary.”
“Another?”
“I am a neurosurgeon, but you’re my wife and I can’t treat you.” His expression was hurt, but he did a good job of trying to hide it.
I felt guilty and I didn’t like it, didn’t want to focus on why that might be. “What happened to me?”
Casey sighed and raked a hand through his thick brown hair. With a shaky voice, he told me about the shopping trip I had taken in preparation for our upcoming anniversary. The flat tire on the side of the road, and the alleged good Samaritan who helped me, and then helped himself to my cash and credit cards.
“An elderly couple found you and called for help,” he finished.
“Oh my god.” He was right. If not for that couple, I might have been out there in the rain for hours. Maybe even overnight. “I could have died.”
‘But you didn’t,” he said softly. “You’re here.”
“I’m here, and I don’t know who I am. I don’t know who you are. I don’t know a damn thing!” Tears formed behind my eyelids and stung. “I’m sorry I don’t remember you.”
How could I fall in love with a man, marry him and not remember him? The stream of tears turned into a full-on sob that shook my shoulders, vibrated my whole head.
Casey laid a heavy hand on top of mine, his voice deep and kind. “It’s all right, Megs. Don’t apologize. We’ll get through this.” He smiled. “I promise.”